The invention relates to a method and an apparatus for ascertaining the quantity of a crop harvested in a combine.
From German Patent DE 199 12 372 C1, an apparatus for measuring at least a portion of the grains in the tailings has become known. Along the feeding path taken by the crop being harvested, filtered out by a cleaning system, to a further processing device, there is a sensor that counts only the grains. Upstream of the sensor in the feeding direction of the tailing augur, there is an ear screw in a housing. The housing is equipped, in the region pointing toward the sensor, with adaptable openings through which the grains pass. The signals generated by the sensor are made visible to the driver in the cab on a display.
A disadvantage of this embodiment is that the measurement values for the number of grains are shown in the form of absolute values. The measurement values displayed lack the relationship with the throughput, for instance, or other crop streams in the cleaning system.
For the driver, it is above all the ratio of the quantity of grains in the tailings to the total quantity of the tailings that is decisive, since this ratio in a simple way reflects the quality of the cleaning system's performance.